Board to advise govt on tariffs inaugurated

Page 14
9-03-09

A five-member Tariff Advisory Board which will advise the government on the determination and imposition of tariffs has been inaugurated in Accra.
The board would ensure that there are clear guidelines, procedures and appropriate legislation for the determination and implementation of trade contingency measures such as anti-dumping.
It is chaired by Mr Tawia Akyea, Secretary of the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA). The members are: Mrs Ama Jantuah Banful, Chief State Attorney; Dr (Mrs) Adelaide Kastner, a lecturer at the University of Ghana; Dr Ben Hagan, Director of the Institute of Industrial Research and Dr Dominic Ayine, a lecturer at the Faculty of Law of the University of Ghana.
Inaugurating the board, the Minister of Trade and Industry, Ms Hannah Tetteh, said it would provide the capacity to generate the depth of analysis required to substantiate claims consistent with international trade rules.
She said the board which would operate for three years, would metamorphosed into the Ghana International Trade Commission to perform the same functions.
She said the Tariff Advisory Board came out of the Ghana Trade Policy, “to provide clear and transparent guidelines for the actions of government in the trade sector and also increase the access to competitiveness of Ghanaian business in international and domestic markets”.
Ms Tetteh said the establishment of the board was to strengthen institutional arrangements for tariff review and determination of trade contingency measures.
“In addition, it will serve as the focal point for collating and analysing information and data to guide decisions on tariff-related issues. The board, therefore, will fill a vacuum in the Ghana Trade Policy that has limited the ability of government to take advantage of remedies provided under the World Trade Organisation,” she said.
She said the establishment of the board reaffirmed the determination of government to create the infrastructure that would enhance the performance of the sector without anything untoward from foreign companies and their governments.
Ms Tetteh said the ministry was determined to support both domestic and foreign companies as long as they operated within the stipulated rules and regulations, adding that “a cursory examination of the functions of the board indicates that it can be effective only when manufacturers are prepared to provide accurate and relevant data on their operations”.
She mentioned the Department for International Development, the German Technical Corporation (GTZ), the World Bank and the Danish International Development Agency, for contributing to the pool fund in support of some activities of the board.
Representatives of the organisation commended the government for the establishment of the board.
The President of the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), Mr Tony Oteng-Gyasi, described the scientific basis for the determination of tariff as laudable.
“Let us try to avoid exemptions through executive instruments,” he cautioned.